Happy Ending
by pleiades007
Summary: Scorpius stays at the Potter's while his parents are away caring for his sick aunt. PG-13 now but has is rated for later chapters. JKR has all the rights. Albus P/Scorpius M
1. Chapter 1

The owl came at breakfast, interrupting Lily's boring recall of every stupid thing she did last night at the Lovegood's. The bird didn't keep Albus from stabbing his eggs. He hates eggs. Didn't his mother know this already? Harry read the note from the owl, frowned, and quickly got a quill to send his response. He sighed and sent an apologetic glance at his daughter. "Sorry, Lils, give me a second," she shrugged and cut off her monologue, "Daphne Greengrass is ill. That's Draco Malfoy's sister-in-law. He and his wife have to leave tomorrow morning to go help with her recovery." Albus didn't bother to take his gaze from his mangled breakfast. "Draco asked if his son could stay with us for a little while." At that, he did look up, incredulously.

Ginny smiled, happy. "Albus, aren't you and Scorpius in the same house?"

Albus cleared his throat, not liking the spotlight. "Yeah. We're in the same dorm, too. There's only three of us in our room."

"Oh good, so you know him pretty well?" she kept on.

Al shrugged. "We don't really talk. Mal—Scorpius is quiet. Keeps to himself a lot." Ginny frowned but didn't press the subject. James's lips were tight. The older Potter boy obviously did not like the idea of their visitor staying for any length of time.

It was Lily who spoke next. "I like Scorpius. He helps me with my Transfiguration. He's incredibly good at it." Harry smiled at her.

"We'll have to go pick up another set of tickets to the carnival today, if we don't want to cancel our plans," Harry announced. "Any of you want to come?" James opted out immediately. He had a date. His first real date ever. With some snot-nosed Ravenclaw. Gross. Well, that left Albus and Lily to tag along. At least he wouldn't have to stay home and listen to his mother ooh and ahh, watching James getting nervous and jittery over his date.

888

Scorpius arrived early the next morning. Albus was still asleep when the visitor crept in his room and placed his bags near the closet. Hours later, when Al woke up and walked to the kitchen, he met the other boy in the living room. "Hey Malfoy," he said, groggily, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

Scorpius smiled slightly. He followed into the kitchen. "Hello Albus. I put my things in your room just to get them out of the way. If you don't want them there, I can move them."

Albus waved his hand at the thought and stood on tip-toe to grab a bowl. "Don't worry about it. You'll be sleeping there, if you're okay with that, so you might as well have your stuff there. You hungry?"

Scorpius smiled again. "No, thank you, Albus."

Al glanced at him. "Call me Al. Or something other than Albus."

"Ooooh, can I call you Alice?" sang a crystal clear and very feminine voice from around the corner. Lily came dancing around the corner, fully dressed and made up. Albus cringed. Scorpius grinned. "Scorp! I'm so glad you're here!" She leaned in and pecked the visitor's cheek and he blushed.

"Thank you, Lily. You look… nice. Why are you dressed so, uh, funky?" Albus took in her outfit. Pink fishnet with a green and purple miniskirt. Big puffy t-shirt with her favorite rock band all over it. Al grinned.

"Oh Dad didn't tell you?" Scorpius shook his head. She sighed. "He probably left before you got here. Well, he and Mom are getting out of work early today to take us to the carnival. We got you ticket, too! Aren't you excited?" She reached up to the top of the refrigerator and took down a plain envelope. Without waiting for his answer, "Here's _your_ ticket." She sat down and eyed him expectantly.

He took the envelope and raised an eyebrow. Albus figured he should cut it. "Not everyone has been to the Hollow Carnival before, Lils." He turned to Scorpius. "The ticket changes its design based on the holder. She wants to see if yours is going to sprout something gossip worthy, like pink hearts and arrows." He rolled his eyes and took a huge mouthful of Wiggle Waggle Oats.

Scorpius smiled at Lily. "What does yours look like?" She shook her head and blushed. Albus laughed again.

"It's a perfect paper copy of the Tunnel of Love. She's holding hands with some boy I've never met before." He glared at her. "Don't you dare go meeting boys." She pfffted. Scorpius raised an eyebrow and was grateful when the conversation turned. He tucked the ticket in his pocket.

888

"Great, isn't it?" Albus asked, his mouth full of color-changing cotton candy. He gestured toward the mass of crazy cloaks, neon hair dos, and millions of lights illuminating the cramped lot.

Scorpius shrugged. "It was really nice of your family to take me along."

Al waved his hand. "You're staying with us for…. However long. You're family, you know? For the time being, I mean." He stopped in front of an event and paid the five knuts to throw a battered quaffle through five hoops. He swore when, after acing the first four, his fifth missed by a yard. "They're jinxed, I tell you!" The witch running the game winked at the boys and Scorpius swore he saw a forked tongue dart out of her mouth.

Al swore again and walked off. "So what do you want to do? Let's not even _think_ of going near that thing," he jerked his head toward the Tunnel of Love. "Lils is guaranteed to be there for the entire day, waiting for mystery boy to show up."

Scorpius nodded. "Doesn't it bother you that she's interested in boys?"

"Uhhh. Should she be interested in something else?"

"I mean, she's only fourteen, right? Or close to it."

"She'll be fourteen next Friday. I assume you'll be there for that." Al looked at the boy. "I pity you so much for that. Let me apologize in advance for anything they have planned. It's bound to be a mess of pinks and girly crap. And I'm sure there will be plenty of girls for a sleepover. Gross."

Scorpius raised an eyebrow. "You don't like girls?"

Albus blushed. "I don't like girls Lily's age."

"Ah, so you like older women?"

Albus laughed. "I don't know. I've got plenty of time to figure it out. What about you? Do you have a whole line of older women pictured on your ticket? Is that why you wouldn't show it? Huh huh?"

Scorpius flushed. "I don't like girls." He looked away.

"Cool. Neither do I. Let's not like girls together."

They eventually made it to the Ferris wheel. "Wanna go up?" Al asked, a goofy grin plastered on his face, sticky from all the cotton candy. Scorpius fumbled, still flustered from their previous rambles. He was sure Albus didn't know what he said, but it didn't change the fact that he said it. "Please, Scorp? You can see the whole carnival from the top!"

"Yeah, Albus. That's fine. Let's go." Scorpius all but raced to the ride, hoping for a long wait in the line. Naturally, they were loaded on the next round, and before they knew it Albus and Scorpius were packed in a round tea-cup shaped compartment with five other witches and wizards. They atmosphere didn't allow for much talking. Albus grinned at Scorpius and leaned over the edge, pointing at all the attractions. Scorpius sighed. Al lost interest, and just before the moment where everything turned awkward, right when they were stuck at the top of the wheel, Scorpius slipped his ticket into Albus's hands.

Al looked down at the piece of paper and saw, clear as day, the outline of their bodies against the setting sun, sitting in a small compartment. Al stared for a good thirty seconds at the picture. And when he finally opened his mouth, and high-pitched "Oh" escaped, as if something very interesting and unfamiliar dawned on him.


	2. Chapter 2

When Al had first mentioned the party, Scorpius thought there might have been a little exaggeration involved. Now that he, with what seemed like every member of the Potter and Weasley family, sat in a pink tutu at a table that looked like it was going to break under the weight of the enormous pile of gifts (all wrapped in pink and purple paper), Scorpius felt he qualified to accept the gracious pity Albus had lent him the day of the carnival. Lily was certainly making a nightmare out of her birthday. A cute, fluffy, and all-things girly nightmare, but a nightmare all the same.

He noticed Albus walking from the lawn to the house, and he excused himself from the table to run up to the other boy. "Albus, wait." Al held the door open for him and continued into the house. Scorpius followed into the kitchen. "Hey," Scorpius started, taking advantage of Al's pause in front of the refrigerator, "hey, what's up?"

Albus looked up and sent a curious glance toward the blonde. "What do you mean?"

"Well," Scorpius shuffled his feet and threw his hands into his pockets, "uh, you just seem kind of, you know, different. The past few days or so we haven't really talked much, and I was just wondering if I did anything to upset you-"

Al shook his head. "It's fine. I was stupid, that's all. I'm sorry I've been acting different." Al shot a dazzling grin toward Scorpius. "I just thought of something that kind of shook my world, you know what I mean?" He closed the fridge and pulled a gallon of milk away from his chest. Scorpius noticed the way the condensation on the jug had clung to his shirt, leaving a wet imprint on the fabric that, if he reached out to touch it, Scorpius was sure it would feel cool and calming against his hot hand. He coughed and looked away when Al sent him another quizzical stare.

"I'm sorry if I did anything to, ah, upset your world." He was looking at his feet again.

"Nah, don't be," Albus put his arm around Scorpius's shoulder and they walked back toward the party. "Some horror, isn't it?" he asked, jerking his head toward Lily, who was currently dancing in her new fairy outfit on the top of the table, a whirling image of lace and rainbows. Scorpius nodded, swallowing audibly for effect. Albus laughed, and then looked serious. He stopped their gait at the door and turned toward his companion. "We've known each other since we were babies, Scorp. Dad used to bring me over to your place at least once a week for Ministry stuff. And you used to come over here with your Dad for dinner about once a month. I liked having someone around other than James and Lils. We were close enough before Hogwarts," he frowned, "and now we've been in the same house for four years, and we're more distant than ever before. Why is that? Why aren't we friends?"

Scorpius's mouth went dry. He opened his mouth to stall his answer, but Lily called for her brother to bring the milk to the table, and Al was gone before he could murmur anything about how "things change," and other nonsensical lies like that. He followed him to the party and sat next to James, who was playing the supportive older brother excellently. James clapped his hand to Scorpius's shoulder when he sat down and gave him a goofy grin.

"She's a piece of work, isn't she?" he asked, grinning toward Lily, who was now placing tiaras on Rose and Hugo and commanding them to "be nice little princesses, or I'll send the garden gnomes after you." Scorpius just nodded. James shrugged. "She's always been like that, though. Full of life and energy. She's still playing with dolls, for Merlin's sake. And then she'll go through some dramatic style change and start wearing fishnets with grungy rock band t-shirts and all this crap. She and Al are so different."

At the unexpected mention of Al's name, Scorpius looked over to see the other boy taking a sip from a soda, talking avidly with a Weasley. Scorpius wrinkled his nose, trying to remember. Rose. She was in their year, a Ravenclaw. Memories of her flashed across his mind and he remembered her amazing capacity to retain information and her very short temper. Scorpius liked Rose, for the most part. But when she kept bugging Al with "What's wrong with you?" and "You seem different today, Al. I don't know if I like it," Scorpius tried to erase her voice from his head. She was annoying right now.

So Scorpius had instead chosen to focus on Albus, who was taking another sip from his soda. Time seemed to stop as he watched Albus lean his head slightly backward, tipping the bottle so that the liquid could rush forward. He could see the veins working in Al's hand as he clenched and unclenched his hand. Al set the bottle down on the table and smacked his lips before smiling at his cousin. Scorpius's breath hitched and it took a moment for him to calm down. "Shit," he sighed.

A light laugh in his ear made Scorpius jump what must have been a foot from the table. Luckily, everyone's attention was focused on Rose's father, who was entertaining the group with some form of the River Dance. Lily sat down beside him when James got up to assist his uncle. "Did it ever occur to you, Scorpy," she grinned when he reacted in horror to his new nickname, "that you're jealous of a glass bottle? Hmmm?" She twiddled her hair and nodded toward Albus.

Now, what should he have done in this situation? Should he have rebuked her for using such a disgusting title to address him? Should he have played innocent and pretend not to understand her question? Should he have nodded and blushed? Scorpius didn't know. So, instead of doing any of these things, he stood up. "I- uh, I'm not feeling too well, Lily." He smiled apologetically. "I hope you love the rest of your birthday party." He turned to leave, but her sudden grip on his hand held him still.

Lily gave him a searching look, and Scorpius was suddenly terrified that she might find what her eyes were rummaging for. She smiled sweetly and let go of his hand. "You shouldn't have to run from anything, Scorpius."

Scorpius rubbed the sweat from his hands on his jeans, nervously. "No, no. It's not anything like that. I love the party. It's, uh, very _you_. I really don't feel well."

Lily shrugged. "If you don't feel well, then you should go lie down." He smiled gratefully at her and walked away. He was halfway to the house when he heard her call to him. "I'll have Albus come check up on you in a bit. Rest well."


	3. Chapter 3

Albus knocked timidly on his bedroom door. When no reply came, he popped his head in. "What's up, Scorpius? Lily said you weren't feeling well." The other boy moaned and Albus frowned. Scorpius had nestled his head underneath Albus's pillows on the bed. Albus grinned at the image and sat near Scorpius's feet. "If you let me know what's wrong, I can probably go snag something out of my father's medicine cabinet."

Scorpius grumbled something. Albus laughed quietly and pulled the pillows away from the other boy's face. "What was that?"

"I said that my head hurts." Scorpius pouted. "But I don't want any medicine for it."

Al shrugged. "It's your call." He leaned against the wall. They were quiet for a moment until Scorpius groaned. Al got up. "I'm going to get you some potion, whether you want it or not."

Scorpius sat up. "No. Don't. I'll be fine. My stomach aches usually go away after an hour or so, anyway."

Al turned back to face the other boy and cocked his head. "I thought you said it was your head that was hurting."

Scorpius blanked. "Right. It does. My stomach hurts, too, now, but I can wait it off."

Albus crossed his arms. "Don't you want something for your head?"

"No." Scorpius lay back down on the bed, and Albus followed to resume his previous position at Scorpius's feet.

"So, what's all this about, Scorp?" Al tossed his hands in the air.

"What's all what about?"

"You faking illness to get out of Lily's party. Not that I blame you."

"I'm not faking, Albus."

"Is it because of your Aunt? Are you worried about her? Because if it is, I know you like to be alone and think when things like this happen, and if you want me to go I can," Al offered.

Scorpius sighed and rolled so that he could look at the other boy without sitting up. "My aunt just has a cold. The reason my parents are following her beck and call is because she's also pregnant, and not really able to take care of herself because the only thing on her mind is the baby. She's not dying, and she'll be fine."

"So it's not your aunt?"

"No, Albus, it isn't."

"But _it_ does exist, right? I mean, there's something bothering you." Scorpius shrugged. "Do you want me to leave? I won't be offended or anything if you mind me being here."

Scorpius smiled. "I don't mind just spending some time hanging out here with you. I don't find many people who treat me like you do."

Albus grinned. "I'm not ready to accept any oaths or covenants of undying love, yet, Scorpius."

"I'm not ready to give any yet, either, so I think we're fine."

Albus looked somewhat serious again. "So why aren't we friends again?"

"Because I'm queer."

The boys were silent. Albus could hear shrieks and giggles coming from Lily's party. He looked pensively out the window.

"Is there a law forbidding queer Malfoys from being friends with Potters?" Albus asked. "Because, if there is, I'll have you know that I'm not always a law-abiding citizen," he grinned cheekily at Scorpius, who laughed.

"Really? And what laws have you broken?"

"Oh you know, curfew at Hogwarts, no quaffles in the house, don't murder your neighbor. Stuff like that. Mostly trivial, but I'm willing to go a little more serious if it means I get to keep you." Scorpius blushed. "Now you listen to me, Mr. Scorpius," Albus started, "you don't really have many friends."

"Ouch, Potter."

"Oh, sorry. Well, you know it's true. You don't have many. And you've just outed yourself to me, so we know everything about each other, basically. So I think I am clearly the most qualified candidate for your best friend."

Scorpius raised an eyebrow. "And your competition?"

"Well, the lack of competition does nothing but boost my qualifications."

"Ah, I see."

"So I think we should be best friends. And I'm not letting you disagree. Maybe I'm perfect for you, Scorpy." He grinned.

Scorpius responded after fifteen seconds. "It will be difficult to maintain a friendship after I murder you and your sister for degrading my name." Albus laughed.

"No, seriously though, Scorp," Albus crawled next to his renewed best friend, "you've obviously been dying to tell someone about the queer thing, right?" Scorpius shut his eyes and nodded. "And you told me and I love it!" Albus paused. "That sounded weird. Anyway, I meant to say that I could be your confidante, just one of your, uh, girlfriends, you know?"

Scorpius burst out laughing. "I'm not flaming, Potter. I don't need a shopping buddy."

Albus shrugged. "So no on the girlfriend. That's too bad, as I was dying to try on a pair of high heels. I don't know how girls can do it." He shook his head. "But I still think you should have someone to gossip with and talk about your crushes and such."

Scorpius raised an eyebrow. "And you're offering for the job?" Albus nodded happily. "Why?" He sat up. "Why are you doing this? Because I know that's not what you want. No one wants that."

Al shrugged again. "I want a best friend other than my psychotic little sister. I want a happy best friend. I want you to be my happy best friend. And no one is happy when they have to bottle up secrets. So I figure, I'll be your secret keeper."

Scorpius rolled his eyes.

"Best to start now, Scorp. Practice makes perfect."

"Perfect what?"

"Perfect happy best friends. You tell me all your secrets so I can keep them, and if you want, I'll tell you all mine."

"I can't imagine you having many secrets. You are awfully prone to just blurting out whatever crosses your mind. And what happened to us already knowing everything about each other?"

Albus flipped his hand. "We know all the big stuff. Like, you know my favorite quidditch team and ice cream flavor, and I know your favorite gender." Scorpius laughed. "So, what's your favorite quidditch team?"

"I don't like quidditch." Albus gasped, horror-stricken. "Next."

"What's your favorite ice cream?" Albus wheezed, still shocked by Scorpius's admission.

"Strawberry."

"Have you told your parents that you like boys?"

Scorpius shot a glare at Albus. "You're showing an awful lot of interest in my preferences. Is there something you'd like to tell me?" Albus blushed. "Yes and no. I have told my father. My mother knew out of instinct, I think."

"How'd your dad take it?" Scorpius sighed. "We don't have to do this if you don't want-"

"No, Al, it's fine. You were right. It does feel good to get this off my chest. My dad was supportive as always. When I told him he shrugged his shoulders and patted me on the back. He loves me."

"Have you ever, uh, dated someone?"

"No. Have you?"

"No." Albus was quiet for a moment. "You talk in your sleep." Scorpius blushed but nodded. "You were dreaming of someone last night."

"Potter, I cannot see how that statement is going to lead to a question you will want answered."

Albus grinned and continued on despite Scorpius's warnings. He leaned in close to Scorpius so their faces were an inch apart. "Now tell me, Scorpius, who have you been dreaming of?"

Scorpius sucked in his breath. He stared intently at Albus's grinning face. "You," he replied casually, "and you alone." Albus's eyes widened.


	4. Chapter 4

Scorpius stared at his new best friend, who had not moved an inch for a good two minutes. Albus was making him uncomfortable, and he began to fidget. "I told you you would not want the question answered," Scorpius muttered, extremely interested in his fingernails.

Albus coughed, and suddenly he was back to a fully moving life form. He backed away from the blonde and grinned. When he turned to face Scorpius, a well-played pout was illuminating his features. "And you turned me down when I offered to be your girlfriend." Scorpius spluttered as Albus laughed. Soon the laughter died, though, and the room was back to silence. Scorpius resumed his fidgeting.

"What about Suzy Conner?" Scorpius blurted, rushed and awkward.

Albus looked confused. "What about her?"

"She's all over you!"

The brunette cocked his head. "Is she?"

"Yes!"

Albus shrugged. "And why does this matter?"

"Why don't you go out with her?"

"Not my type."

"What is your type?" Scorpius asked, out of breath.

"Why are you asking?" Albus crawled closer to Scorpius again, his eyes serious and focused. "Why does it matter that I haven't dated her? Why do you care if I'm not dating a girl? Why aren't you rejoicing at the fact that I haven't dated girls? Why-"

"She's stereotypically perfect. You're an athletic, popular, rich boy. She's a rich girl with huge breasts and not a dot of acne marring her face. She's got bright eyes and freckles. She laughs at all your jokes and practically bows in your presence." Albus gritted his teeth, but did not move from Scorpius's personal space. "So my question is, Potter-"

"Albus."

"Albus," Scorpius corrected. "My question is why don't you at least try to date her?"

"I will answer your question if you tell me first why you want me to." Albus glared at Scorpius, and the blonde blushed, bending his head down to avoid his gaze. He twiddled his fingers in the sheets of Albus's bed.

"I don't know that I _want_ you to," he began, defensively. "In fact, I don't really give a damn what you do. I just want to know _why_ you haven't. Understanding people's actions, that's what I care about." He looked up again at Albus, who had backed slightly away. Albus's eyes flickered back and forth between both of Scorpuis's as the brunette studied the visitor. After a moment of unease for both of the boys, Albus grinned and backed away from Scorpius.

"I don't like freckles." Albus replied, quietly, looking at the ceiling. "And I have no sense of good humor. My jokes are terrible, and Suzy laughs at them. I don't like that." Albus chanced a passing glance at Scorpius from the corner of his eye and saw that the blonde was doing the same. They giggled when their eyes met. "I like quidditch. And DADA. And Honeydukes. And my Uncle's joke shop."

Scorpius sighed. "I like Honeydukes."

Albus's head whipped around. "You like me, too, it seems."

Scorpius shrugged and then grinned devilishly. "You're alright." Albus punched him on the arm. Scorpius frowned. "You're not like anyone I've ever met before."

"Well, to be fair, we're not exactly meeting people left and right these days." Albus smiled.

"You don't care that I'm, well, different. Other people, they may have been fine with it or supportive or whatever, but you act like it hasn't changed anything. And you asked who I like! My parents haven't even done that. No one would do that. But you did. And any other guy would have freaked out if I had told him that I … like him. But you didn't." Scorpius's eyes grew large. "What the hell's wrong with you?!" he playfully shouted.

"First off, I do care that you're different. I can't go around picking up normal best friends." Albus grimaced. "Think of what that would do to my image! And I asked you who you like because we were getting to know each other, remember, to be perfect happy best friends. And that's what perfect happy best friends do. And I didn't freak out when you told me because I'm pretty sure I already knew. And I didn't freak out about it beforehand because I respect you and I know that you're too much of a pussy to act on anything." He grinned at Scorpius. "So there," he finished, sticking his tongue out and squeezing his eyes shut.

A split second later, Albus was knocked half off the bed by the weight of Scorpius, who had wound his arms around Albus's torso and fitted his head next to Albus's neck. "Thanks Potter."

"Albus," he corrected, breathless.

"Albus," Scorpius whispered, nuzzling his cheek against Albus's neck and running his fingers through the other boy's black hair.

They lay hanging off the bed, upside down, Scorpius running his fingers through Albus's hair, every now and then tightening his arms around the other boy. Soon it was Albus's turn to fidget. His arms were bent uncomfortably in the air behind his head, and so he moved them so they were placed in front of him. When he realized his hands were holding Scorpius's waist, he moved them higher to Scorpius's back. When Albus's hands began to run up and down the other boy's back, he punished them by balling them into fists and securing them under his legs. This proved to strain Albus's upper body as he struggled not to fall off the bed, and he eventually sighed and gave up the whole institution, wrapping his arms around his friend, for, he told himself, convenience's sake. Scorpius hmm'ed with pleasure at the contact.

It was bound not to last. The boys found themselves slipping, and they both let out not-very-dignified yelps as the fell to the floor. Scorpius sighed sadly and Albus glared. "That was your fault," he accused. Scorpius raised an eyebrow. "Had you not gone and attacked me, we wouldn't have fallen." He sniffed and raised his head.

Scorpius grinned. "Maybe I should have considered the physics involved," he conceded. "But you made me happy, and I thought I should show you."

Albus snorted, and then looked horrendously uncomfortable. "So, um, what was that?" he asked, trying to allude to the previous cuddling.

Scorpius turned to pull a blanket off the bed and crawled next to Albus. "That, Albus, was comfortable. Or would have been had we not been suspended in air. Would you like to try again?" Albus eyed the blanket dubiously. "Believe it or not, I do actually have a headache. I've found over time that cuddling with cute boys under blankets on wood floors happens to be the best remedy."

Albus lit up at the compliment, ignoring the incredibly odd situation. He was cute. Scorpius thought he was cute. "Well, when you put it that way," he started, "I wouldn't want to deny your needs." He held out his arm for part of the blanket and they were promptly covered, head to toe.

They lay on their sides staring at each other, not touching. While Albus tried to assess how the events of the past week had led him to this current state of affairs, Scorpius gathered what he thought to be courage. He failed miserably. "Do you ever watch muggle movies, Albus?"

Albus, who had at this point prepared himself for something related to an awkward advance from the blonde, was blown away by the question. "I've seen one. Once."

"It wasn't The Wizard of Oz by any chance?" Scorpius quizzed, looking away.

"No," Albus replied, completely thrown off. "It was a very _very_ weird picture. With what muggles think goblins look like. And a goblin king, if you can imagine, named Jareth." Albus tilted his head again. "Why? Should I have seen this movie?"

"No," Scorpius sighed. "I was just wondering if you would catch the implication if I said I was the lion."

Albus laughed. "No, my dear Scorpius. You are as snakey as they come. Nowhere _near_ a Gryffindor."

Scorpius glared. "And what are the characteristics of snakes?"

Albus shrugged. "Dad says that the Houses aren't really representative of anything anymore. But I think we fit in Slytherin well enough. You especially, what with your sexually-deviant secrets and all."

Scorpius snorted. "So Slytherins have secrets?" Albus nodded. "And what's your secret, then?"

Albus grinned. "I don't have any."

"Then what are you doing in Slytherin?"

Albus sighed. "Oh fine. If you must know, I do have a secret." Scorpius raised an eyebrow and Albus scooted closer. He placed one arm on Scorpius's side and the other propped his head up so that he could whisper into Scorpius's ear. "Secretly, Scorpius," Albus whispered, "I begged the hat to put me in Slytherin."

Scorpius sat still. "That's it? I'm gay and you beg a hat? Those are the deep secrets of Slytherin boys at Hogwarts?"

Albus used the arm around Scorpius to pull the blonde closer. He could hear the hitch in the other boy's breath. "I'm surprised it worked, really," Albus stated, ignoring Scorpius's questions.

"Why's that?" Scorpius asked, slightly off-tone.

"Because the hat sees everything in your head, you know. He saw why I wanted to be in Slytherin. I could have sworn he was going to put me in Gryffindor with the ridiculous amount of loyalty that I had toward you." Scorpius's eyes went wide with shock, and Albus smiled. "I begged the hat to put me with you. Even though I was terrified of being in Slytherin, I was more terrified of being without you. You were my only friend besides my family. And when I watched you get sorted into Slytherin, my silly eleven-year-old mind had made up itself. I had to choose between being with James," Albus wrinkled his nose, "or you. And since I see James all the time during the summer, I chose to be with you."

Scorpius was very quiet when he responded. "I knew that you did not want to go in Slytherin. That's why I asked to go there."

"What?" Albus froze, genuinely shocked.

Scorpius shrugged. "I didn't want to have those—these feelings. I wanted to be as far away from your universe as possible, a planet out of sight."

"Y-you knew you liked boys when you were _eleven_?"

Scorpius shook his head. "I knew I liked you. And even when we were that young, I knew that I wanted to be more than what we were, but I didn't know exactly what that would be. I knew I wanted…" Scorpius sucked in a big breath and shut his eyes. "I knew I wanted to kiss you. I knew I wanted to hug you and hold you. I knew that was different." Scorpius smiled. "It seems that I've gotten more than I could have asked for by going forward, but in reverse."

Albus looked confused. "You were trying to avoid me." Scorpius nodded. "Because you liked me, and you didn't want me or anyone else to know." The blonde nodded again. "But here I am, fully in the know, in spite of your best efforts." Another nod.

"That's what I meant by going forward in reverse. I suppose we've always been getting toward this, uh, point of understanding. I was just being stupid trying to avoid it. But what else could I have done?" Scorpius raised the pitch of his voice, becoming defensive.

Albus shook his head and pulled Scorpius tighter. "You don't have to explain yourself to me. I get it. It's weird, but I get it."

Scorpius's head found its way back to Albus's neck, and soon Albus felt fingers twining through his hair again. Both understood what had happened, and neither would comment on the situation.

"Hey Scorpy," Albus grinned. Scorpius moaned in mock torture.

"Yes, Alice?"

"Have you ever been kissed?"

Scorpius spluttered. "Not exactly."

Albus laughed. "How can you not exactly be kissed?"

Scorpius sighed. "I'vekissedyouonce."

"Where was I for this?"

Scorpius laughed hysterically. "Um, you were, more or less, I mean, you were, well, you were asleep."

Albus did not know how to react to this piece of news. "And, was I any good?"

"Beyond words," Scorpius replied wistfully. Albus let out a snort of laughter. "Why do you ask?"

"Merlin, you're wild! You go around kissing boys in their sleep, forcing your deviancy on others-"

"Why do you ask, Albus?" Scorpius spat between his teeth.

Albus regarded the blonde for a moment, debating between responses. "Because, wild thing," he started slowly, "I think I love you." Scorpius choked. "But I wanna know for sure."

"Do you?" Scorpius squeaked.

Albus nodded. "I think I've just put quite a few things together. The thought of kissing you doesn't make me want to vomit-"

"Oh, words that make my heart sing."

Albus continued. "And ever since you've been here, I've felt like I was right on the edge of figuring something out that has been bothering me for a long time."

"And it is?"

"That I don't really don't like freckles."

Scorpius made it clear that he did not understand.

"And whether or not someone laughs at my jokes doesn't really matter." Scorpius recognized the earlier conversation and caught on. "It's the breasts that I don't like." Albus grinned. "Suzy has breasts!" he shouted in a high-pitch voice.

Scorpius rolled his eyes. "That she does."

"And you don't!" Albus continued with the same cheerful tone.

"No, I do not."

"And I'm going to kiss you!"

"Wha-"

888

They were on the bed again, listening to the quieting music and voices from the last moments of Lily's birthday party. Scorpius, although the taller of the two, lay on top of Albus, who now took the liberty to play with the head of platinum blonde hair that sat on his chest. Scorpius wiggled his toes with delight.

"Where does this put us?" Scorpius asked, his eyes shut.

Albus rested his chin on the top of Scorpius's head. "This puts us smack in the middle of I think may be the biggest adventure of our lives."

"How very poetic."

"Mmm, but true. And adventure that lasts a lifetime is certainly large. We are only just setting forth into the wilderness of love! It's the point of no return for us, it is!"

Sensing the energy building up in Albus, Scorpius huffed and rolled off his new best boy friend. "Really?" he asked with a blank face.

"Oh yes! It's bound to be a dangerous trip. What with forests of sex toys and wild, heterosexually-crazed monsters!"

"Oh dear."

"Indeed! But fear not, my darling, and have courage! Together we can head to our destination."

"Which is?"

"Happiness! Pure happiness! A happy ending to last a lifetime! We'll struggle through the wild, with nothing but our feelings acting as our compass. We'll do what we know what's right. What we know makes us happy-"

"Maybe we should take it slow-"

"Our undying love with be our safety rope, tying us to each other and keeping us together no matter the mountainous strains we endure!"

"Maybe we should go back to being just perfect happy best friends." Scorpius murmured.

Albus gasped. "Oh no, Scorpius! No going back! Never!" The brunette calmed down. "Besides," he pouted, "happiness is only real when shared. Shared and stretched as much as possible."

"We can share happiness and not go adventuring through the wild at the same time," Scorpius pointed out.

"But what happiness is found in living life on the calm side?" Albus grinned and pressed his lips to Scorpius's. "True happiness is found on the wild side of life."


End file.
